


Fraternal Relations

by LectorEl



Series: Magic Triplets [3]
Category: Batman (Comics), Young Avengers
Genre: Gen, don't mess with Tim's family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-05-09
Updated: 2012-05-13
Packaged: 2017-11-23 10:46:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/621259
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LectorEl/pseuds/LectorEl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“For the record? They’re not twins.” Tim flicks his fingers lazily, making the shrapnel dance. “We’re triplets.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> And so begins the children's crusade in this verse. Starts at the same point as Children’s Crusade #1, and some of the dialogue and scenes are stolen from it. Don't ask about the timeline, please.

Tim’s the newest member of the young avengers. Only been with them a month or two, hasn’t participated in many battles. He’s new, and he’s quiet, and he blends into the background compared to his brothers.

He doesn’t have the ability to change the world with a word, like Billy. He’s not shouting out his anger like Tommy. He’s a shadow in bruise-blue and dusk-gray, eyes hidden behind a simple domino. He’s not very noticeable at all, in comparison to his teammates.

So it makes sense, that the Sons of the Serpent overlook him. The one they’re afraid of is Billy, kneeling in the grass beside their brother, his eyes glowing in rage. More fool they.

Tim sends cars skidding with a push of his hands and crosses the street, chunks of metal shrapnel lifting and floating in lazy orbit around him. He stops, briefly, next to his brothers.

“Watch Speed,” Tim tells Billy calmly, resting his hand on his brother’s shoulder. “I’ll take care of this.”

Billy looks at Tim, and whatever he sees on Tim’s face makes a mean, pleased expression cross his face. He smiles. Tim nods at him, and keeps walking. He rests his hands at his side, closes his eyes behind his domino, and reaches deep inside him, to the knot of cold fury that is always burning in his breast.

His eyes snap open. The shrapnel spins. One hand sweeps back, drives forward, and a car crashes through a low wall, destroying the enemies’ cover. A snap of his fingers, and street signs uproot themselves and wrap themselves around the ones not quick enough to dodge.

“That was foolish of you,” Tim says, tilting his head up to look at the enemy, high on their perch atop the dry fountain. A cold smile tugs at his mouth. “If you’re lucky, you’ll live to understand how foolish.”

He fans his hands out, pushes against the metals of the earth, and steps into the air. The magnetic fields thrum, twisting like living things under his hands. The enemy shifts, uneasy. They’re starting to suspect they’ve overlooked something.

Tim almost pities them. There’s no way they could have anticipated that Sparrowhawk was anything other than another new hero. They’re not prepared to face Robin. Tim watches them with heavy-lidded eyes, hand half raised.

“For the record? They’re not twins.” Tim flicks his fingers lazily, making the shrapnel dance. “We’re triplets.” Another careless twitch of his fingers, and the jagged pieces fly. A moment later, so does blood.

“Sparrowhawk!” Someone is screaming. Tim ignores them. These people are the enemy. They’ve hurt his brother. They’ve hurt his _family_. Tim won’t tolerate it. Not again. He draws his hand back, sends another barrage of shrapnel flying.

“Sparrowhawk!” Again. Tim shakes his head in irritation, and pulls more shrapnel into orbit around him. The enemy isn’t dead. Not yet.

“Tim!” Tim startles, half turns. Tommy barrels into him, bleeding sluggishly from his stomach wound. They topple. “They’re finished. Stop it!”

Tim wraps his arms around Tommy, and frowns in confusion. “You’ve never had a problem with killing. And they _hurt_ you.”

“Yeah,” Tommy press his forehead against Tim’s, staring at him intently. “But _you do_. Remember? This isn’t you. Back _down_.”

“They hurt you,” Tim repeats.

“Don’t, Tim.” Tommy grimaces. “Please.”

Tim sighs, and the shrapnel drops to the ground. “Only this time, Tommy.”

Tommy winces and lets out a hysterical little laugh. “Yeah, okay, fine.”

“Hulkling!” Billy shouts. They look up to see Teddy take a shot to the chest. Tim tries to rise, to come to his brother’s aid. Tommy tightens his grip. They struggle briefly, long enough to miss the arrival of the Avengers. Then Billy _screams_.

“Teddy!” The world goes white.

***

“Your brother nearly turns those men into pin cushions, and you put them all into comas with a single thought. You might just have easily killed them,” Ms. Marvel says, staring down at Tim and Billy.

Tommy draws closer to Tim, and Teddy hunches protectively next to Billy. In that moment, they’re united, one single family facing down the outside. Tim reaches out, and silently takes Billy’s hand

“I would never-” Billy starts to protest.

Ms. Marvel cuts him off. “You two don’t know _what_ you are capable of. And neither do we. So you’re going to be staying with us for a while.”

Teddy protests, and Tim laughs inside his head. They think his _magnetism_ is what makes him deadly? He’s trained with Shiva and Ducard. He’d lay decent odds he could take out half the people in the room before they took him out. And that’s _before_ he ever so much as floats a paper clip.

“-We don’t want another Scarlet Witch on our hands. Or another Magneto.” Ms. Marvel says. Tim squeezes Billy’s hand.

“What is that supposed to mean?” Billy asks, looking up at her narrowly.

Tim laughs, out loud this time. “It means they’re locking us up because they’re afraid. Because that’s _never_ backfired, ever. It’s not like I can think of half-dozen super villains, easy, with that as their back story, or anything.”

Iron Man glances at Ms. Marvel, brings up his display. He gives his little show on the Scarlet Witch. Billy argues. Tim isn’t listening. He’s not going to let the Avengers lock them up. They need to get out of here, and they need to do it soon.

“I appreciate your concern. But I won’t be staying for your evaluation.” Billy stands, and Tim stands with him, still holding his brother’s hand.

“Neither will I,” Tim says, and with his brother, walks out the door. Tommy and Teddy, and then the rest of the team, follow.

As soon as they’re outside and in the air, Teddy asks “Can we talk about the fact that you two just walked out on the avengers?”

“We did not,” Billy contradicts hotly. “We walked out on Cap and Iron Man and-“

“Like I _said_ -” Teddy begins.

Billy cuts him off. “They were going to take us _prisoner_.”

“They’re were going to take your _temperature_ ,” Teddy pauses. “I think.”

“No, pretty sure they were going to lock us up,” Tim contradicts.

Billy doesn’t look comforted. “Oh. My. God. We just walked out on the avengers.”

“Why is that a _bad_ thing?” Tommy asks. “Earth’s mightiest heroes are _afraid_ of you guys. That’s how powerful you are. By walking out you probably earned their respect. Even I’m hating you a little less than usual.”

“Thanks Tommy. That means a lot,” Billy says, sounding weary. “Now, would anyone _other_ than the team sociopath care to weigh in on this?” Tim lays a hand on his wrist.

“Once you hand over control to somebody, you never entirely get it back.” Tim gives him an awkward, sideways hug, doing his best imitation of Dick. “You did the right thing.”

The rest of the team is silent. Tim exchanges worried looks with Tommy.

“Billy, you took out twenty guys with guns and nukes all by _yourself_. Tim was practically _torturing_ them,” Kate begins. Tim goes cold. He listens to his brother argue with her, growing tenser with every passing moment.

He clutches at Tommy’s hand. They’re going to kick him out. Just like before. Tainted, wrong, unwanted. His parents didn’t want him, Bruce didn’t want him, of course the young avengers won’t want him. Nobody wants Tim.

Tommy takes his hand, laces his fingers with Tim’s. Tim grips it tight. He has Tommy. Even if they kick him out, Tommy will be there.

“So you think the avengers are right about me?” Billy asks, voice rising. Tim winces.

“I didn’t say that,” Teddy says. But he looks guilty.

Billy scowls blackly. “You’re just afraid they _might_ be.” He kicks off, floating to the ground, where he magics himself into street clothes. Tim glances at Tommy quickly. Tommy nods.

Tim wraps his hand around Tommy’s waist, and drops them down slowly, using the magnetic repulsion of the metals in the ground to slow their fall. Billy smiles at them tightly, and uses his magic to swap both of them into their own street clothes.

“Can we please talk about this like the mature semi-adult superheroes we want the avengers to think we are?” Teddy calls after them. Billy keeps walking, and Tim and Tommy trail after him.

“I’m not interested in what the Avengers think anymore,” Billy says shortly, voice clipped.

“We’ll handle this on our own,” Tim adds. “Without involving people who want to take us prisoner for what we _might_ -“

Tim stops. All three of them do, at the sight of Captain America standing in the Kaplans’ front hall. Tim recovers quicker than his brothers though. He grabs both of them by the wrist.

“Run!” He drags them the first few feet, before they recover from the shock. Tommy grabs Billy, and Tim uses a magnetic field to attach himself to the metal in Tommy’s belt. All three of them blur away.

***

Tim unlocks the door to one of his Gotham safe houses. It was purchased with money from his trust fund, so there was no reason for Bruce to have changed the security. He had expected Oracle to reclaim her gear. The cameras and mikes still scattered around the apartment surprise him, although he did his best not to let it show.

“Welcome to Gotham, you guys,” Tim says wearily, and collapses onto the couch. “If the avengers have any sense at all, they won’t set foot in this city.”

Billy glances around the apartment warily, eyes lingering on the expensive computer, open bedroom, and profusion of shiny appliances in the small kitchen. “Uh, Tim? Is the owner of this place going to stop by any time?”

Tim smiles, and shakes his head. “It’s mine. The one upside of being the one our parents kept- the inheritance.” Billy shifts on his feet, comes to a decision, and then abruptly hugs Tim.

“I wish we could have grown up together,” he says, holding on to Tim. He looks over at Tommy. “All of us.”

“What?” Tommy scoffs, crossing his arms. “Is this group hug time or something?”

Billy grins. “Yes. _IwishTommywasoverhere_ , _IwishTommywas_ -“

“Argh!” Tommy throws up his hands. But he looks pleased. “ _Fine_. You win.”

“Victory.” Tim smiles, and yanks him inward.

Fifteen minutes later, there’s a knock on the door. Tim’s head jerks up. There are only a few people that could be, and he doesn’t want to see _any_ of them.

It’s been nearly a year since the last time he’d seen anybody from the Justice League’s side of the fence, and if he had been given any choice in the matter, he would have kept it that way.

“I can get it,” Billy offers.

“I can make them go away,” Tommy offers at the same time.

Tim shakes his head. “Thanks, you guys.” He stands up reluctantly, and slowly makes his way to the door, and checks the peephole.

He opens the door with a sigh. “Hello, Dick.”


	2. Chapter 2

Tim leaned on the door frame. “O told you I was here?”

“No,” Dick said, frowning. “Well, yes, but I was already on my way over.”

“Who’s this guy, Timmy?” Tommy asked, wrapping a possessive arm around his shoulder. Billy trailed over after their brother and stepped up to flank Tim. Dick blinked rapidly, his eyes shifting from Tim, to Tommy, then Billy, then back to Tim. Tim mentally groaned. Of all the times for those two to start working together...

“Dick’s…an old friend of mine,” Tim explained, shoving halfheartedly at Tommy. “Dick, this is Tommy and Billy. Tommy’s the white-haired brat.”

“Tim…” Dick refocused on Tim. His voice rose. “Where the hell have you _been_? You _disappeared_ , and there were rumors you got involved in that mess with the _SHRA_ , and now you’re here with, with…” He gestured at Tim’s brothers, practically vibrating with conflicting emotion.

“With us?” Tommy suggested, voice rising in turn. “I don’t know who the fuck you are to Tim, but you’ve got a lot of nerve, asshole, acting like that.”

Billy stepped up, eyes picking up an ominous glow. “I think you should go.”

“You guys…” Tim shook his head. “If I wanted you to get rid of him, I would’ve taken Tommy’s offer.” Dick twitched, raising his eyebrows at ‘Tommy’s offer.’ Tim ignored him.

Tommy snorted and stepped back. “Fine. But if he so much lays a finger on you, I’m messing up his pretty face.”

“Or I could turn him into a toad,” Billy said, sharing a smile with Tommy. Tim covered his face with his hands. Why did he ever want them to get along?

“ _Guys_ …” Tim sighed. “Could you two give us a little privacy?” The last was directed at his brothers. Tommy started to protest, but Billy grabbed him and dragged him back into the apartment, out of Dick’s line of sight. Still close enough to hear, but at least Dick wasn’t looking at them like they were Arkham escapees anymore.

Tim pinched the bridge of his nose. “I should’ve just let them lock me up. At least a cell would’ve been peaceful.”

“A cell?” Dick yelped, scanning Tim in alarm.

Tim shrugged sheepishly. “It’s complicated. More Belle Reve than Blackgate.”

Dick looked even more alarmed, if that was possible. “Are you alright? Nobody’s after you?”

 _Only the Avengers, Dick._ “No, nobody,” Tim lied. “Look, Dick could you… back off? Please? We’re a little busy.”

“You’ve been gone for _ages_ , Tim. We’ve all been worried.” Dick stepped forward and attempted to hug Tim. Tim warded him off with raised hands, trying to ignore Dick’s hangdog expression.

“You know dad. His house, his rules, and it’s not like I’m going to _stop_ breaking them.” _No metas in Gotham. And have you tried_ _ **not**_ _being gay, Timothy?_

“You can’t- you left over _that_? We could’ve worked something out.” Dick bounced on his heals, anxious bewilderment in every line of his body.

Tim snorted. “Maybe, maybe not. But you had the problem children to deal with, and then dad’s little ‘accident’. And I wouldn’t have liked the solution.” The so-called cure. Power suppressors. Aversion therapy. None of those were acceptable. Not anymore. Tim was _proud_ of his powers.

“We could’ve used you while dad was- sick,” Dick twitched, reaching out to Tim and aborting the gesture halfway though when Tim flinched. Tim yanked at his hair in irritation.

“Dick.” Tim shoved a hand in his pocket, and dug out some of his ever-present collection of paperclips. He held one up in front of his chest.

“See this?” Tim snapped his finger, and it rose in the air, unfolding and bending sinuously. “ _This_ is what I am. And he will _never_ accept that.”

“Little brother…”

Tim shook his head. “Please, Dick. Just- let us be for a bit. There's things we need to take care of.”

Dick searched his face, and seemed to find what he was looking for. “Alright, Timmy. I’ll give you some time. But we’re not done talking.”

Tim mustered a smile. “That works. See you around?”

“Absolutely.” Dick went in for another hug, and Tim allowed himself to return it for a few moments before making himself pull away. He wasn't Dick's little brother anymore. He couldn't be. Dick gave Tim another searching glance, and Tim swallowed down a stab of guilt.

“ _Goodbye_ , Dick,” Tim said pointedly. He was a terrible person. Dick was probably better off without Tim in his life anyway.

“See you.” Dick walked away slowly, glancing over his shoulder every few yards. Tim watched until he turned the corner, then stepped back inside, and closed the door firmly.

“What was that about, Tim?” Billy asked. Tim shook his head.

“No time to explain. We need to be out of here before nightfall. Work quick.”

Sunset was half an hour away when Tim finished prying the tracking devices off the car of one of his former aliases, and Tommy and Billy finished loading it with the supplies they’d grabbed from the apartment’s stockpile.

“Okay,” Tim said. “Time to get the hell out of Gotham.”

***

Tommy and Billy were asleep, and it was the wrong side of midnight when Tim felt the magnetic fields around the car shift. Irritably, he smoothed them back into their proper places, only to feel them move again. He tugged, and the unknown force tugged back.

“I am an idiot,” he said quietly, and stopped the car. Tommy sat up, blinking, and shook Billy awake.

“Merely sleep deprived, grandson,” Magneto said, settling down on the car’s hood. Tim held his hand up for caution without looking back at his brothers, turned the engine off and slipped out of the car. Of course, Tommy ignored that and followed him out of the car, Billy on his heels. He looked at Magneto in awe.

“So it’s true?” Tommy demanded. “You’re our grandfather?” Tim resisted the urge to hit his head against the car door a few times.

“You and Billy are his grandsons,” Tim pointed out instead. _Distract, distract, distract, keep the crazy genocidal mutant from killing your brother…_ “Nobody knows _where_ I come in to it.” Billy gave him a disappointed glance and wrapped his arm around Tim’s shoulder.

Magneto laughed, his voice rich and deep. It reminded him of Bruce. “You have power over magnetism, you are identical to your brothers, and you have Wanda’s eyes. I have three grandsons, not two.”

“The scarlet witch had twins, not triplets.” Tim countered. Billy whacked him on the arm.

“So not the time, Tim,” he hissed. Tim gave him a pointed look, trying to convey ‘ _work with me here_ ’ without speaking.

“And William and Thomas are the spiritual heirs of my daughter.” Magneto said. “You are not the strangest member of this family by any measure.”

Tommy grinned, and hefted himself up on the hood next to Magneto. “So what’s with the meet and greet, grandpa?”

Tim and Billy winced simultaneously. Magneto gave them all an indulgent look. “Come with me. We have much to discuss.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My writing has gotten so much better since I wrote this. If it wasn't a necessary part of the verse...


End file.
